Ivanka Trump Reportedly Didn’t Consult With Her Aides Before Tweeting Message That Received Backlash
Ivanka Trump views herself as a champion of women and an influential figure in helping to empower them professionally and personally. The first daughter and special assistant to her father, President Donald Trump, is between a rock and a hard place when it comes to advocating for women. With over a dozen women that have accused the president of some form of sexual harassment, Ivanka isn’t considered the best source in many’s eyes for helping women. She backs her father and has never acknowledged his accusers.
After Oprah Winfrey gave her moving speech at the Golden Globe Awards in light of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movement, Ivanka Trump took to Twitter to share how inspiration she thought it was.
“Just saw @Oprah’s empowering & inspiring speech at last night’s #GoldenGlobes,” Ivanka Trump tweeted Monday night, adding a link to the full speech. “Let’s all come together, women & men, & say #TIMESUP! #United.”
The message received heavy backlash, with celebrities like Chrissy Teigen and Alyssa Milano chiming in. Thousands thought Ivanka was jumping on the #MeToo, #TimesUp, and Oprah bandwagon, which they viewed as largely hypocritical. Moreover, it made Ivanka appear tone-deaf once more.
According to Politico, Ivanka Trump didn’t consult with her aides on Monday night before posting that tweet. On Tuesday, a spokesman declined to comment on Ivanka Trump’s tweet or her private support for the #MeToo movement.
Friends and colleagues who know Ivanka said she’d be oblivious to the irony of her tweeting support for Winfrey’s speech in which the media mogul declared there’s a “new day” dawning on the backs of empowered women “fighting hard to make sure that they become the leaders who take us to the time when nobody ever has to say ‘Me too’ again.” The friends and colleagues say Ivanka is probably frustrated by the negative reaction over her tweet and thinks she’s being treated unfairly. One New York socialite who used to be on friendly terms with Ivanka in the benefit circle tells the website that the first daughter believes she’s a “part of the feminist club” and would fail to see how confounding her message was.
Ivanka tries to have it both ways: Trump’s daughter and #MeToo supporter https://t.co/mefon1H8MH pic.twitter.com/H491EjAioX
— POLITICO (@politico) January 10, 2018
One White House aide defends Ivanka Trump’s tweet on Monday night.
“What’s the alternative — be silent and not give support? I think she can show support for an important cause independent of the reports about her father,” the aide said.
One incident in which Ivanka broke from her father was when she spoke out against Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore over allegations of sexual misconduct. Ivanka said there’s a “special place in hell for those who prey on children.” She went on to say that she didn’t have any reasons to doubt the victims’ accounts.
Donald Trump was reportedly furious with his daughter for making those statements when he remained committed to supporting Moore, who lost to Democrat Doug Jones. Ivanka isn’t likely to give her father reason to be angry with her too often, however.
“A central tenet in her life, is that her dad is and will be an amazing president,” says one confidante.
Ivanka Trump’s tweet praising Oprah Winfrey’s speech got over 26k comments.
